train today at 3:05 pm

[NW Mailing List]

On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 3:21 PM, Stewart wrote:


> **

> I was watching the Roanoke railcam about 3:00 pm today when I saw  short

> "Westbound"- one unit with about 10  or so unusual cars. The light was such

> that I couldn't get a view of the cars not in shadow. They were "house"

> type cars, long maybe 60 ft. or so, round roof like old round roof baggage

> cars but they were high cars such as a double deck stock car might be .

> They also had two or three round vents on an otherwise plain roof.  Any

> body any thoughts as to what I was seeing.  They didn't look like auto

> racks.

>


Sounds like the trash train, or "Waste Line Express," that runs from the
trash transfer station just north of the East End Shops to a large landfill
in western Roanoke County. The train crosses over to the Virginian for the
balance of the trip, branching off at Bradshaw (not too far west from where
the VGN goes under I-81 at the Ironto exit). The train runs up the branch
(built specifically to serve the landfill) to a small yard. Full cars are
left in a small yard to be unloaded and empties are picked up to return to
Roanoke, along with the occasional tank car of leachate that is collected
from the landfill to be run through the Roanoke sewerage treatment plant.

A Google search turned up a discussion of the operation, along with photos
of the cars and Smith Gap Landfill area. See
http://www.trainsim.com/vbts/showthread.php?270336-NS-Trash-Car&p=1412446#post1412446

There was also an article in Trains in June, 1966, if you have access to
the website or back issues.

Bruce in Blacksburg
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